Report: NBC removes Ramo from Olympics coverage after remarks about Japan and Korea

Joshua Cooper Ramo has reportedly been removed from his Olympics assignment after making insensitive comments about Japan’s relationship to Korea during the opening ceremony. (Getty Images)

Just two days after NBC analyst Joshua Cooper Ramo’s incredibly questionable comments about the relationship between Japan and Korea during the parade of nations, it appears that his time as a Winter Olympics commentator is over.

The Korea Times is reporting that Ramo has been removed from his role as Olympics commentator, according to an “NBC Sports spokesperson” who refused to be named.

“It was possible for him to do more with us here; now it is no longer possible,” the official said.

As Japan entered PyeongChang Olympic Stadium during the opening ceremony on Friday, Ramo said “every Korean will tell you that Japan is a cultural and technological and economic example that has been so important to their own transformation.” This set off a firestorm of criticism from Koreans around the world, many who pointed out that Japan brutally occupied Korea from 1910 to 1945, which led to untold suffering and the country splitting into to two parts. That split gave us North Korea and South Korea, and a long history of conflict between the nations that continues to this day.

NBC officially apologized on Saturday, having anchor Carolyn Manno read a statement on the air. The statement specifically apologized to Koreans who had been “insulted” by Ramo’s comments. The unnamed NBC Sports official told the Korea Times that NBC also sent a letter of apology to the PyeongChang Organizing Committee.

Ramo, who is the co-CEO of consulting firm Kissinger Associates, has worked one other Olympics with NBC. He was added to the opening ceremony team of Mike Tirico and Katie Couric as an Asia expert, to help introduce viewers to an area of the world that might be unfamiliar to them. Instead, his comments angered a number of people, as well as the country hosting the Olympic Games. Ramo himself has yet to apologize for his remarks.